Outdoor Painting in France

We had a beautiful time painting in a quiet southern region of France called Aveyron. Small stone Medieval villages surround the hills of the Tarn River, and are walled in by white cliffs capped with expansive plateaus. In this region, things are still done the old way. Flocks graze on the plateaus. Produce is grown organically in local gardens. Castles crumble on the hilltops, and life is refreshingly simple. Lauren and I had the pleasure of meeting many of the locals in the tiny village of Liaucous where we stayed, and they were very generous and hospitable. Here is the work I created on this trip:    

Outdoor paintings:

Koeppel, "Liaucous Morning" 10 x16 inches, oil on panel

Koeppel, "Sunset over Mostuejouls", 8 x 12 inches, oil on panel 



Koeppel, "Notre-dame des Champs", 9 x 12 inches oil on panel



Koeppel, "The River Tarn", 10 x 16 inches, oil on panel

Koeppel, "Gateway to the Tarn Gorge" 5 x 11 inches, oil on panel



Koeppel, "Le Chateau de Peyrelade (unfinished)". 8 x 12 inches oil on panel



Koeppel, "View from the Causse Noir", 8 x 10 inches, oil on panel



Koeppel, "Tarn Valley Afterglow", 5 x 7 inches, oil on panel

 Sketchbook:

Special thanks to Adrienne Pascal-Chattot for sharing this magical place with us, and to the people of Liaucous for welcoming us.

We are planning to return to this region next September so if anyone would be interested either in a workshop in this area, or just joining a group of artists to paint outdoors please email me, erik@erikkoeppel.com

Thanks you for reading. Next post may cover our subsequent visit to the Louvre.